Broken glassware and eBay

ammonite

Hi all,
I'm after some advice. I have been selling a lot of glassware on eBay lately. I have packaged the items up as well as possible, lots and lots of bubble wrap, all done individually, yet so much of it is seemingly smashed in the post, it almost seems worthless to sell it.

I can't claim a refund from Royal Mail, so why should sellers be able to claim one from me? I appreciate if I've not tried to wrap it well then I should indeed have to refund it, but I've spent some serious money on bubble wrap, for the item to get there smashed and me being out of pocket (for the item and postage).

Is there any way around this? Am I forced to give sellers a refund or can I write on my listings that no refunds are offered?

I know that sounds harsh, but the amount that have been broken is beyond belief - in fact one of the pictures doesn't even look that similar to the glasses I sent to the buyer, I think he may be pulling a fast one and I'm getting cheesed off.

soolin

You packed it wrongly and expect your buyers to pay for your mistake?

I sell glass, lots of it and get it shipped via Royal Mail to buyers as far away as Australia. You mention bubble wrap, but i don't see you mention boxes at all? Do you double box or at least single box it as bubble wrap will only protect against knocks, not against crushing or dropping.

Yes sometimes things do get so badly damaged that no amount of packing will save them- I once had a tea pot that arrived with th eboxes caved in and tyre marks across it with a note from RM apologising for an incident. However if you find your stuff arrives fairly often in pieces then you ar enot wrapping well enough.

I was at the delivery office once where someone was complaining they had received 2 broken mugs. The seller had merely bunged a few feet of bubble wrap round them and put them in a jiffy bag- no box at all.

Technically speaking htough you cna put what you like on your auctions- but it will make no difference as it remains your responsibility to pack things well enough to get there in one piece.

Hammyman

What kind of box are you putting it in? You want nothing less than double walled. I would use loose fill, not bubble wrap for filling the box. The boxes I buy to post laptops are called "plate boxes" and made specifically for crockery. They're well strong but they're not cheap.

ammonite

Thanks for your reply Soolin,

The thing is, I don't think I package them incorrectly. Yes I double box all items and bubble wrap to within an inch of their lives which is why I am so frustrated, what else am I to do in terms of wrapping?

I think I'm mostly frustrated because I actually am not certain all of the "claims" are genuine.

So if I put on my auctions that I will package them with bubble wrap and double box them and no refund will be given if glass breaks, does that contravene eBay rules? (that is basically what Royal Mail say to me).

I have even offered to drop some items at sellers houses if they live within 50 miles so that I don't have to post them, yet people still insist on them being posted, then want a refund if they break!?

ammonite

Thanks for the reply Hammyman, I will search out the boxes you state. I have double boxed them using standard cardboard boxes, newspaper in between the boxes to create a cushion and then bubble wrapping the items.

hermum

The only thing you can do is to offer them as collection only, this will obviously alter the price you get for the item.
It's your responsibilty to get the item to the buyer safely. When I've sent fragile items, I bubblewrap, then put in a box, then into a bigger box with packing peanuts.

ammonite

custardy - I'm not sure your reply was too helpful, I'm asking for advice because I'm not sure how else I can package my items without them being damaged as I think I'm packaging them well and I'm not certain how that could be constituted as "being a child". What happened to 'be kind to all moneysavers' ? Royal Mail doesn't offer any insurance for glassware and yes the packaging and posting is my choice, which I'm asking advice about here. Equally, I have stated that I have received some pictures but due to angles and reflections it is hard to tell if the glassware is indeed the glassware I sent to the buyer as I'm suspicious that the patterns don't look the same, but the quality of the photographs is too poor to tell. I can't do more than offer to drop them at a buyers house if they live within 50 miles.

hermum - Thanks for the suggestion, I may try packing peanuts or state collection only, the latter in particular is probably the route I will take as it is a shame for me as a seller and a shame for the buyer if something they hope will arrive in one piece arrives in tiny pieces. Thanks for the reply.

soolin

ammonite wrote: »

custardy - I'm not sure your reply was too helpful, I'm asking for advice because I'm not sure how else I can package my items without them being damaged as I think I'm packaging them well and I'm not certain how that could be constituted as "being a child". What happened to 'be kind to all moneysavers' ? Royal Mail doesn't offer any insurance for glassware and yes the packaging and posting is my choice, which I'm asking advice about here. Equally, I have stated that I have received some pictures but due to angles and reflections it is hard to tell if the glassware is indeed the glassware I sent to the buyer as I'm suspicious that the patterns don't look the same, but the quality of the photographs is too poor to tell. I can't do more than offer to drop them at a buyers house if they live within 50 miles.

hermum - Thanks for the suggestion, I may try packing peanuts or state collection only, the latter in particular is probably the route I will take as it is a shame for me as a seller and a shame for the buyer if something they hope will arrive in one piece arrives in tiny pieces. Thanks for the reply.

Ammonite, if *your * glass ware arrives broken and others does nto then your packing is obviously not good enough.

However, you may be having issues as you give the suggestion in your auctions that your packing is poor, you say

So if I put on my auctions that I will package them with bubble wrap and double box them and no refund will be given if glass breaks, does that contravene eBay rules? (that is basically what Royal Mail say to me).

Now to me that statement, which you cannot enforce, is telling buyers that you have a high incidence of breakage- so maybe you are attracting chancers. Take the statement out, it just looks defensive, you are and you will remain responsible .

If you believe you are being constantly scammed, then again there must be somehting you do to attract them- there really aren;t that many scammers on ebay so why do they single you out? Broken glass can often look completely different, even a different colour, to what is was when it was whole.

soolin

Also if you go collection only you will have more issues to worry about. Firstly it is a sad fact that some buyers do not read all the auction so you will get people paying, assuming postage is free and expecting their goods delivered. You also have the issue of paypal on collection of course.

scheming_gypsy

If you want to protect yourself a bit more, you can pick up timber lengths at B&Q for a quid. Package the glass up in bubble wrap and then build a simple frame around it before sticking it in the box.

RainbowDrops

If you're worried about chancer, then ask for proof that the item is broken, eg photos.

As soolin mentioned, putting no returns on your listing doesn't mean that you're not responsible if the item breaks.
The buyers can raise a claim against you if the itemdoesn't arrive as described, and if this is escalted you'll more than likely be forced to refund.